8 Ways to Use Canned or Fresh Pumpkin This Year

If you have read the site for any length of time, you will know that this family is nuts about pumpkin. Today I wanted to showcase eight different ways you can use those cans of pumpkin in your kitchen and none of them happen to be pumpkin pie… at least not this week! There really are so many sweet and savory dishes that can be made from canned pumpkin and these happen to be eight of my delicious ideas for making pumpkin work for you this year!

Want to wow your company? Serve this with a loaf of fancy artisan bread and end the meal with a delicious apple crisp. It will be like you are literally eating the season of fall right off of your plate.

If you are worried about how your family will react to pumpkin pasta, scale the pumpkin back. You can do between 2/3-2 cups of pasta, depending on your personal taste. Start with a little and ease your family into the two cup ratio.

In a large skillet sauté the garlic in the olive oil on medium heat. Add the turkey sausage and cook until no longer pink, breaking the meat up with your spoon as you cook it. Remove turkey sausage and garlic from the skillet. Pour the chicken broth into the skillet and deglaze the pan using a wire whisk, to bring up all of the flavors stuck to the pan. Whisk in the half and half, sour cream, pumpkin, and seasonings. Simmer for ten minutes. Meanwhile, boil the pasta in salted water until al dente. Drain pasta and stir into the pumpkin mixture along with the turkey sausage, simmering for another three minutes or until the sauce thickens and hugs the pasta. Stir in parsley and garnish with Romano and more parsley.

Side Note- If the sauce is too thick, thin it with a little addition of chicken broth until you get it to the right consistency.

Pumpkin waffles are a special tradition that are enjoyed after a day of pumpkin picking at the pumpkin patch. These are truly my favorite waffles of all the different variations we make and a fantastic way to use those cans of pumpkin in your pantry!

Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and salt in large bowl. In a second bowl, add eggs, sugar, pumpkin, milk, and butter; beat well. Gently fold in the flour mixture. Spoon in about 3/4 cup of batter into the waffle iron. Cook each waffle for 4-5 minutes. This recipe makes approximately 5 waffles on my waffle iron.

Additional Notes- I double this recipe to make an extra batch to freeze or when entertaining. Make sure to spray your waffle iron well with nonstick spray or these will stick to the waffle iron and make a big mess. Also, be sure to leave these on at least four to five minutes. If you try to take them off sooner than that, they will not taste as good or set up as nicely.

Our gingerbread waffles incorporate all of the holiday flavors I love- molasses, ginger, cinnamon, brown sugar, pumpkin, and nutmeg. What more can I say? The only downfall to this recipe… you can’t eat just one!

Step out of the box and have a little gingerbread before Christmas and find yet another way to use some of that delicious pumpkin!

Preheat waffles iron. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and brown sugar until fluffy, then beat in pumpkin, milk, molasses and melted butter. Stir the wet into dry until just moist. Do not over stir the waffle batter. Brush the iron with a little melted butter and cook 4 waffles, 4 sections each. Serve with toppings of choice.

These pumpkin pancakes are truly light and fluffy with just the perfect balance of pumpkin and spices. I have never experienced a more perfect pancake and a drizzle of syrup with butter makes these a delicious morning treat on a cool autumn day.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, spices and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together milk, pumpkin, melted butter, and egg. Fold mixture into dry ingredients. Spray or grease a skillet and heat over medium heat: pour in 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. Cook pancakes about 3 minutes per side. This recipe makes six 6-inch pancakes.

Side Note- This can easily be doubled and frozen or stored in the refrigerator for a great breakfast later in the week.

A first time canning experience led to one of my favorite hostess gifts of all time- a delicious Pumpkin Butter perfect for spreading on dinner rolls! You can triple your batch and let it cook in the slow cooker for six hours to make a larger quantity without a lot of effort. Keep this recipe in mind when creating those holiday gifts!

Combine pumpkin, apple juice, spices, and sugar in a large saucepan; stir well. Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or until thickened. Stir frequently. Transfer to sterile containers and chill in the refrigerator until serving.

Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins are my family’s favorite side dish if it fall or the dead of summer. I try to make sure to stockpile pumpkin for just this reason and you might be doing the same after making a batch of these for your family! Best served at room temperature, they are deliciously moist and a fantastic side accompaniment to any meal!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with muffin liners. In a bowl, toss together flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. In another mixing bowl, mix with a wooden spoon, the pumpkin puree, sour cream or buttermilk , butter, eggs and honey, until well combined. Add the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture just until combined. Transfer to the prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle with a little sugar (I used raw sugar) on top. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, or until edges just begin to color. Cool to room temperature. Makes approximately 12-13 muffins.

Love those fancy pumpkin spice lattes at your favorite coffee shop, but don’t love the price? Put leftover cans of pumpkin to good use and create a coffee house worthy drink right in the comfort of your own home!

Pour all of the ingredients into a pot and heat over medium-high heat until the coffee is steaming hot. Pour into mugs and top with whipped cream & cinnamon. Enjoy!

If there is any recipe from my recipe collection that I plan to hand down to my children, this would be the recipe that I hope to share with them. This pumpkin bread is a cinch to pull together, is made from entirely pantry ingredients, and is an elegant gift for the holidays. I hope you love it half as much as I do and can share a loaf with your family this fall!

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9×5×3-inch loaf pans. Beat sugar and oil in large bowl to blend. Mix in eggs and pumpkin. Sift flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and baking powder into another large bowl. Stir into pumpkin mixture in 2 additions. Mix in walnuts, if desired.

Did you know that you can make your own pumpkin puree? It is very easy and a great way to get your money back on the pumpkins you bought!

The Tightwad Gazette recommends not cutting into your pumpkin until after October 30th. Save the cut out portions in your fridge and the day after Halloween, you can begin to process it. Simply cut the flesh away from the skin and dice it, just as you would do with squash. Fill a pot with your cubes and add two inches of water to the bottom. Simmer the pot until the pumpkin is soft. Then all you have to do is run it through your food processor and you can freeze this into two cup portions (the equivalent size of the canned stuff).

Just as a side note, when thawed, the puree will be more watery than the canned version. Just allow the water to drain out and use the pumpkin as usual. For more great pumpkin tips, be sure to visit our “Oh, Glorious Pumpkin,” article for more ideas from selecting the most perfect pumpkin ever to what to do with those delicious pumpkin seeds.

What is your favorite pumpkin recipe? Feel free to share those links and ideas here!

Published October 11, 2010 by:

Amy Allen Clark is the founder of MomAdvice.com. You can read all about her here.